Keith Eshelman, Los Angeles-based founder and CEO of Parks Project, is also an active member of NatureBridge’s Yosemite regional board of directors. His stewardship journey began not in a boardroom, but at the trailhead of a closed trail in Big Sur, CA. Hoping to share an outdoor experience with his young daughter, Keith found the trail shut down—and it sparked a question that changed his life: How are we leaving parks and trails for the next generation?

Working in Yosemite, every week poses a new challenge, whether it's snowy weather in the winter, mosquitos in the spring, or any number of other things that could happen while working in a wild place. One week this past April, my challenge came in the form of working with a new age group of students: high schoolers from the McConnell Foundation. In the time that I’ve been working at NatureBridge Yosemite, I have mainly stuck to my comfort zone of working with middle schoolers, but this week? Something new, something different, and hopefully something exciting. I hoped that my group would also be willing to take on new challenges with me.

Terri Carta has spent most of her life championing the importance of preserving natural spaces. Growing up in Southern California, Terri avidly explored parks and outdoor spaces with her family, but it wasn’t until high school that she learned what it means to advocate on their behalf. Her conservation journey began not with a specific career goal, but with a class trip to NatureBridge (formerly Yosemite Institute) that combined adventure, discovery, and the power of Dr. Seuss’ book "The Lorax."